Desperate Future
by glasswrks
Summary: The Slayer and her friends face a bleak future. There is one scene one between Willow and Buffy it's towards the end. Please feel free to either skip that part or this story.


**Desperate Future** By A.M. Glass

**Copyright:** June 29th, 2000

**Rating:** 'R'

**Disclaimer:** Joss Whedon, Fox Studios, Mutant Enemy, et al, have something to do with _"Buffy The Vampire Slayer"._ No copyright infringement is intended or inferred. The story along with any/all original characters are the sole property of the author and can not be used without expressed permission first.

**SPOILERS:** A slight mention of the second season finale, I'm not that great with episode titles, so you'll have to forgive me.

**Author's Note:** I know I've said with some other stories that I've never written anything quite like this... yadda... yadda. BUT... I can honestly say that this story is **UNLIKE** anything I've written before. And I think you'll agree once you've finished the story. I've rated it 'R' for Violence.. I'm not sure if it's **GRAPHIC** violence, but it's up there. And a few; read two, bad words. As well as some sexual content.

**Angst Warning: BIG** time angst in this little ditty.

**Thanks:** To Xita, for giving me the go ahead on the story. I hope the slight corrections and additional dialogue help out a little. That part about _hope_, I kind of left it the way it was. I haven't figured out a way to make that part better. Sorry.

**SECOND AUTHOR'S NOTE 05-24-2002: Please be aware of when I wrote this story. Almost TWO years ago... keep that in mind.**

* * *

**Chapter One**

All around them was death and destruction, nothing was left untouched, unblemished. Bodies, limbs that belonged to the living, left their marks on the once green fields; now brown, dead and muddy from countless pints of blood soaking the ground.

Amid the ruin laid two bodies, unlike the rest surrounding them. Where there was blood, gore, their bodies were clean. Their bodies whole, pristine relics in the face of such carnage.

Hands reaching out towards one another, as if daring death to part them.

The rumble of machinery drew ever closer, breaking the un-godly silence which covered the area. The odd-looking vehicle chugged its way towards the bodies. A conglomerate of parts combined to make the vehicle seem as if it had rolled off the set of a **B** movie. Only the driver and the three passengers knew the effort it took to get them far as they had in one solid piece.

The driver felt a tapping on his shoulder, and looked in the direction that was being pointed out. Nodding his head briefly, he grunted as he turned the wheel and the _car_ protested as it made its way up a slight incline. After the first five miles, they became numb to the massive destruction of humanity they had to drive over.

They finally came to a stop, placing masks over their faces, they exited the vehicle and were assaulted with the stench of death, and the buzzing of flies. They took along their crude but highly effective weapons with them as they walked the few feet they needed to cover. They had only one objective, and that was to get the bodies of their friends, they had survived so much, but they were not foolhardy enough to get caught after sunset. Their feet sank in the still wet ground, and the noise their steps made accompanied them.

The driver; who had once gone by the name of Rupert Giles, reached the bodies first. He wanted nothing more than to wake from the nightmare they had been living in for the last five years. He knew it was not meant to be, his throat constricted at the sight of his dear friends, his family, on the floor so still. He slipped his hands underneath the arms of the red-head and waited while his companion had a hold of her legs.

"One... two... three," he said softly, as they lifted the body and walked carefully over the slippery terrain back to the car, where the back door had been opened. Once they had secured the body, they repeated the procedure for the other one. There were no tears shed amongst them, they had shed them long ago.

"It's time," the man; that had replaced the boy Alexander Harris had once been, said to the stony face woman who had stood guard. She nodded and trudged back to the car, getting in and slamming the door shut. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply.

"Are you alright?" she was asked.

"Fine. Let's get the hell out of here," Buffy replied.

Starting the car, Watcher put it into gear and drove away, smoke billowing behind them.

The woods were quite as the sun began its descent over the mountain tops. Buffy hurried and opened the door to the cabin they now called home.

They had left Sunnydale years ago.

They had taken as much as they could in the beginning from Giles' apartment, still, so many books and artifacts had been lost and he had been unconsolable. Some of the things that had been lost had been in his family for ages.

The cities were mostly deserted by now, only a few hold outs remained behind, they had made the mistake of going back into town months ago, nothing was the same. Houses, shops were in smoky ruins, people acting like scavengers, hunting in packs. A few of the locals had tried to go after them and suffered for their troubles. Buffy and the rest were in no mood to provide anyone with their weapons or clothes.

Or food.

They had never returned since... nor were they ever going to.

If Buffy had any say in the matter.

Anya watched silently; running her hand over her slightly protruding belly as if soothing her unborn child, as the bodies were finally removed from the car. She knew they were being taken into the cellar and placed on the two tables for the night.

They had nothing else to do...

But wait...

For sunrise.

"Watch it Xan," Buffy told him, as she held the lantern up.

"Sorry," he replied, as he gently replaced the arm he had knocked off back on the table.

"That's it then," Giles said as he dusted off his hands.

"Did we make it in time?" Anya asked from the top of the stairs.

All eyes were on Giles.

"We'll know tomorrow," he answered, as he walked upstairs, moving past Anya and into his bedroom, where he collapsed on the bed, praying silently that they had made it in time.

Buffy and Xander made their way upstairs, closing and locking the door to the cellar behind them. Listening for the slight thump of the wooden cross that had been nailed to the other side of the door, to rest in place. They all walked into the kitchen, where Anya began to make coffee.

"Xander?" Anya said, calling him by a name he no longer wished to be called by.

"Yeah."

"Are you okay?" she asked, seeing the look of despair on his face. It was something she had seen recently and she didn't know what to do about it. She loved him, and that was something she hadn't expected, and it was something she never wanted to lose.

"Fine. Perfect. How are you two doing?" he said. At first, he wanted nothing to do with being a father. His biggest fear was ending up exactly like his own father, and that wasn't something he'd ever want to inflict on any child of his. When she told him, he tore out of the cabin and didn't return for three days. 

He wished he could take those days back. When he returned, Willow took him out to the lake and read him the riot act, telling him in no certain terms that he had better shape up and take care of both Anya and the baby, or he could just leave. He begged for Anya for forgiveness and made it up to her for the next two weeks.

It did not mean that he had conquered his fears, no, they were a big part of him. He realized that he had more to live for than just himself now.

"Worried... about you," Anya replied.

He got up from the table and hugged her. He turned so that he was facing Buffy, while he rubbed Anya back. He mouthed, _What do I do?_

_Tell her you love her,_ Buffy said silently.

"I love you," he whispered, he felt her squeezing him in return. "You know what? Why don't you get some rest. I'll take care of the coffee," he told her, kissing her on the top of her head.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Yeah. Go on, I'll be there soon," he said.

"If you're sure. Good night Buffy," she said.

"Night Anya," Buffy replied, watching as she left the kitchen.

Xander prepared the coffee and sat down across from Buffy, sliding the cup to her. She reached out and pulled it closer, absorbing the warmth from the ceramic cup, blowing on the steaming liquid before taking a drink.

She grimaced.

Xander shrugged his shoulders apologetically.

"So, are we just going to sit here silently the rest of the night, or are you going to say something?" Xander asked, as he sipped, then pushed the coffee cup away from him.

"What do you want me to say Xan?" she asked resignedly.

"Tell me that it's going to be okay. That we're both dreaming this... anything but the truth," he replied.

"It's a dream. We're under a spell that Will and Tara are working around the clock to get us out of in one piece," she told him.

"I feel _so_ much better now, thank you," he said sarcastically.

"I'm going to sleep," Buffy replied, rising from the kitchen table, the coffee cup left as a sentinel in her wake.

"But..."

"What Xan? Do you want me to patrol? Do you want to go with me? Is that it? We both know that we wouldn't last ten minutes out there, not any more. Tell me I'm wrong," she asked, the brief fire that had shone in her eyes sputtering out before it had a chance to burn out of control. 

He looked at Buffy and was shocked by what he saw.

Defeat.

"You've given up."

"Don't you _**dare**_ judge me. I couldn't stop them from getting to my mother... you were there. You... you saw what they did to her," Buffy told him, her eyes bright with unshed tears. "What makes you think I can do anything for anyone else!"

Xander knew what she was talking about and could see it as if it were yesterday.

**Chapter Two**

_There was so much blood, at first he couldn't tell which was his and what belonged to Buffy's mom. He remembered crawling to where her body laid on the floor of the warehouse they had been taken to. His hands kept slipping; unable to find a purchase on the crimson pool he had to pull himself through in order to get to her._

"Mrs. Summers? Joyce?" he whispered, fearing that they weren't alone. He thought he heard a noise and stopped in his tracks, after what seemed like hours; and were in reality only seconds, he lifted his head from the floor, wiping away at the blood that covered the side of his face.

He was only a foot away from her when he shut his eyes against the image he saw before him. He now knew why she hadn't answered him. He could feel the bile rising in his throat and swallowed convulsively. He had seen some things in the past; living in Sunnydale, but this was by far the worse.

Joyce Summers had been eviscerated; loops of her intestines had been wrapped around her throat, choking her. He had no idea that she had been put through such misery.

All because of who she was.

Of who she had given birth to.

She wasn't Joyce Summers...

She was the Slayer's Mom.

And, if they couldn't get to Buffy...

He had suffered, but the extent of his injuries paled in comparison to the atrocities they had committed against Mrs. Summers. He remembered reaching out and closing her unseeing eyes.

What shocked him the most, was that he did not cry.

He knew he should have, after all, he knew her. She wasn't someone without a name, and yet, he felt nothing.

"I'm sorry Joyce," he whispered, before passing out from his own injuries, and blood loss. He woke up some time later, to find his wounds cleaned and stitched and Buffy huddled in the corner rocking silently back and forth. They had told him later that she had gone on a killing spree that lasted the entire time he had been unconscious.

Four days.

There wasn't anything anyone could do or say to stop her; short of trying to restrain her, they had tried that once and Giles had sustained a broken wrist for his troubles.

That had been almost a year ago...

The last time they had gone into town.

* * *

"I'm sorry," he told her, wanting to atone for his perceived sins. Of not being able to protect Joyce, or not dying in her place. For so many things.

"Drop it. I'm going to bed," she answered and left him alone with his thoughts. Buffy closed her door and undressed. Getting into bed, she stared at the ceiling, wondering if she should go back and apologize to Xander for what she had said. She decided against it, there would be no point anyway. 

She closed her eyes and her memories drifted back in time...

_She couldn't remember anything that had taken place those four days after finding her mother and Xander. When they finally located the warehouse it had been deserted, Buffy could make out the coppery smell that she knew meant one thing, and one thing only._

Blood.

Their flashlights cut through the darkness, as they concentrated on finding their friends and family. The beam of Tara's flashlight caught a glimpse of something on the floor just ahead of them.

"There... I think," she had said, coming to a stop and waiting.

All four of their flashlights shone in the area in question. At first, they all thought that both Xander and Buffy's mother had been murdered, they were in a pool of blood and neither was moving.

Giles had held Anya back from running towards Xander, while Willow collapsed against Buffy.

It was up to Tara.

She was the one who made her way over towards the bodies, Buffy noticed how Tara had looked away, as if unable to stand the sight before her eyes. Then just as suddenly, her head jerked back towards the bodies.

And for that brief moment in time...

That split second...

Before reality settled in...

Buffy held out hope.

Hope that her mother was still alive.

Alive and waiting for her to help her.

But when Tara turned towards Xander without sparing her mother a second glance, she knew the truth.

Her mother was dead.

"He's still alive," Tara had called back to them.

"Xander," Buffy heard Anya say, before passing out in Giles' arms.

Before she knew it, Giles had gone over to help Tara with Xander. When he reached Tara, he glanced at her mother and gently placed his coat over her body.

Every memory after that moment was a blur and it wasn't until she had heard Xander calling her name did she finally come out of her private Hell.

Buffy knew they were being torn apart, slowly. And there was nothing she could do to stop the decay. The two people who could have done something were helpless to do anything about it.

"Will... come back," she whispered into the night, as she placed her arm over her face. She didn't want to be alone anymore. She let her memories drift once again, going back two months.

* * *

_"Buffy?" she had heard Willow calling out._

"Over here Will," she'd replied, wondering to herself if it had been a good idea. She left the cabin wanting to be alone. There was too much going on in her mind and she needed time to think.

"Are you okay?" Willow asked her as she approached.

"I'm fine Will. I was just wanted some quite time, you know," she had said. She could remember seeing Willow stopping where she was and looking as if she were going to leave when she reached out and said, "Wait. Don't leave... please."

Willow walked over towards her and sat down next to her, their knees touching. It was a beautiful day; Buffy recalled, as they both sat silently, looking across the lake and into the surrounding forest.

Buffy had felt an ache in her heart that reached down to her soul, and she began to cry. Willow wrapped her arms around her, and gently rocked her back and forth as the tears fell...

For her Mother...

Who she couldn't keep safe, no matter what she had done.

For Riley...

Who had been killed while protecting a group of children from a horde of vampires.

For everyone she ever cared about.

She had not heard from Angel and could only hope that he, Cordelia and Wesley had made it out of Los Angeles in time before it fell under the iron fist of one of the warring fractions. Knowing him, he would have stayed behind to help the resistance. And against their better judgements, Cordelia and Wesley would have stayed with him... to **fight the good fight**.

She wasn't sure how long they stayed that way before her tears finally ran their course.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"It's okay Buffy," she heard Willow reply.

Buffy looked up through her bloodshot eyes and saw that Willow had cried as well. She reached out and wiped at the tears with her thumb. And before she could acknowledge her own actions she kissed Willow.

"Oh God... I'm sorry Will," she had said, trying to untangle herself from her friends' grasp.

"It's okay Buffy."

"No... it's not. I'm sorry."

She kept telling her that it was **okay** and that everything was fine. No matter how much Buffy wanted to free herself, Willow continued to hold on tighter.

"Will... please. Let me go," Buffy recalled saying, as her voice cracked. She knew she had to get away... if she didn't...

"No."

"You don't understand Will," she had tried to explain something she wasn't sure she had understood at the moment.

"Yes... I do," Willow had replied, and closed the gap between them.

Buffy surrendered herself to Willow. Let Willow take away her pain, take her to places she'd never been before.

They were frantic at first, as if they had no time left, no time for soft caresses or gentle kisses. 

That would come later on that afternoon...

Each bruise they had inflicted on each other would be lovingly tended to, as bodies moved against each other while the sun bathed them with its light.

Labored breathing finally abated, softly whispered terms of endearment exchanged. 

Lethargically they fell asleep wrapped in each others arms. Buffy awoke to find Willow staring at her.

"Hi," she said, suddenly shy around her friend.

"Hi."

"Buffy... I love you," Willow told her.

"I love you too Will," she'd replied.

"Good. We better get back," she recalled Willow saying to her. They gathered their clothes which had been hurriedly abandoned and dressed in silence. Willow had helped her pick up the blanket she had brought out with her and then they proceeded to head back to the cabin.

As the cabin finally came into view, Willow stopped and grabbed her hand, squeezing it, before kissing her gently. They walked into the cabin and went their separate ways.

Buffy could recall her complete surprise when Tara came up to her two days later while she was in the kitchen cleaning up after dinner. She tapped her on the shoulder and when she turned around, Tara reached out caressed her cheek and kissed her on the lips.

"I know," she had said, before turning around and leaving Buffy stunned and speechless.

* * *

Buffy finally managed to fall asleep, once again dreaming of that afternoon with Willow.

**Chapter Three**

Giles left his bedroom and made his way down to the cellar, the lantern throwing its meager light over the two covered bodies laying on the table.

Sighing heavily, he began the incantation.

He knew he had to do this part alone.

Both Willow and Tara had pressed upon him the importance that no one else was to assist him. He anointed their foreheads with oil and watched as it burned then evaporated. He knew it was going to occur, so he continued his duty, wiping the sweat away from his brow as he finally finished two hours later. He was exhausted, and he could do no more.

Covering them again with the sheets they had prepared before hand, he kissed them both on their foreheads and went back upstairs. Sunrise was three hours away. He went to the kitchen and cleared they coffee cups that had been left behind. Taking a moment, he looked through their cupboards, they were beginning to run low on certain items. He shook his head, it would mean another trip and soon.

Putting on a pan of water, Giles stoked the coals in the wood-burning stove, placing smaller pieces of wood into the fire, waiting for them to catch before carefully adding bigger pieces. Running his hands through his hair, he sighed. He didn't want them to attempt the spell, one that would finally close the Hellmouth for good, and free Sunnydale.

They had stopped the Hellmouth from opening so many times, that they hadn't worried about it. Yes, they kept an eye on it, but other things had arisen and the Hellmouth was pushed back in everyone's mind... including his.

They couldn't believe how it was finally opened... 

None of them could.

How one act could change the face of their world.

During the reconstruction of the high school, there had been an accident.

A silly, nothing-sinister-about-it accident.

They had all done what they could to staunch the wave after wave of demon, vampire and things they had no name for began to crawl out of the woodwork summoned by the power that emanated from the Hellmouth.

Riley had called in many favors that were owed to him, Graham and others of their former group came into town. And for a brief time they managed to turn back the tide.

Then Riley died.

Buffy had gone after the horde of vampires that had killed Riley as he protected a group of children that had been caught after dark. Then Buffy did what she had told Giles later on: _Was something I thought I'd never have to do again._ And she staked him.

Joyce had comforted Buffy as much as she possibly could.

_'She was a wonder,'_ Giles told himself, as he made himself some tea.

He'd actually began to think of group as a ready made family with Joyce fulfilling the role as mother-figure. Her loss was a tremendous blow, not only to Buffy; who had more of her share of heartache to last a lifetime, but to the everyone.

He prayed that they would not lose Tara and Willow as well. He did not think they could survive.

He smiled briefly, _Mr. Giles,_ she called him. It had taken months to pass before Tara finally called him _Giles_. Their relationship had grown over the years. He had never recalled seeing such power in someone so young, not even himself. Granted she had been around magicks her entire life, but that was only a small part of it.

She was... _is_, he corrected himself, a very good teacher. Willow's own power and knowledge had grown with Tara's tutoring. So when they came to him with a plan to seal the Hellmouth once and for all, he was skeptical at best. It had taken them two days to finally convince him that it could work. 

And he agreed with it only on the provision that they could not sacrifice themselves.

_'There will be no martyrs here. Do you understand me?'_ he asked them.

_'Don't worry Gil... Watcher,'_ Willow began, _'We want to ask you for a favor anyway,'_ she concluded, taking Tara's hand in hers.

He remember the way Tara looked away from him for a brief moment, and when she looked at him, she was blushing. He wondered what it was she was thinking that would have caused such an emotion in her. Of course he asked right away what kind of favor they wanted.

_'La... later. After... after we seal the Hellmouth,'_ Tara had replied.

He shook his head once more, he needed to be able to grant that favor, whatever it was. He had to.

Perhaps then, the could be _Giles_ once again, instead of _Watcher_.

He was tired of watching...

He had watched so many things...

Buffy staking Riley...

He watched as Xander and Joyce were taken...

He watched as Tara walked over towards their bodies...

Watched as Tara and Willow left the cabin to gather their supplies for the spell...

Watched as they prepared the sheets; that they now laid underneath, by writing a protection spell on them. The protection spell was not for Willow or Tara... but rather for them.

Tara had explained to him that they would be at the greatest risk to the others prior to sunrise and that no one, except him, should remove or touch the sheets before then.

He grimaced as he took a drink from his cup and found that his tea had grown bitterly cold. Taking the cup over to the sink, he poured the liquid down the drain. Grabbing a candle from the shelf, he lit it, and turned the light from the lantern down. He walked out of the kitchen and towards the front door; casting a protection spell over it first, he opened the door and stepped outside into the chilly air. He shivered, his breath visible in the flickering light of the candle.

Walking out onto the porch, he placed the candle in one of the many sconces located around the front porch. He sat down in his favorite chair, he looked at the mountain tops which were visible and noticed white caps. It would do them good to start preparing for the on-coming winter he thought to himself as he began to rock.

**Chapter Four**

"Gi... Watcher, wake up."

"Wha.. What?" he answered sleepily.

"Wake up. It's time."

His eyes opened quickly and looked out, the sun had begun to casts its light in the sky, pushing back the night once more. He got up stiffly and entered the cabin, with Buffy right behind him. He stopped when he saw that the door to the cellar was open.

"Who... who opened the door?" he asked, his heart pounding in his chest, only to see Xander coming through the opened door. He walked over to him and restrained himself from grabbing Xander by his shirt and throwing him against the wall. "What did you do?" he asked.

"Nothing."

"Did you touch... anything?"

"No."

"Are you sure?" he asked, his tone deadly, he could not fail them.

"Back off. I didn't touch a fucking thing alright," Xander said his anger evident.

Giles left him and headed downstairs, but not before locking the door behind him. He saw the lantern Xander had left behind him and looked at both bodies carefully.

He sighed in relief.

Xander had not touched anything.

He had to wait for a few more minutes, gathering the supplies he began the second-stage of the preparations. Taking a knife; which had been blessed, he slit his palm and gathered the precious fluid into a cup. After binding his wound, he raised the cup and recited the words they had left for him.

Walking over towards Willow's body first, he lifted the sheet from her face and then drew the symbol of life on her forehead with his blood. He moved to Tara and repeated the same steps, after that there was nothing else he could do...

But wait.

* * *

The room was deathly quiet.

Buffy sat on the arm of the couch and stared at the door as if she could bore her way through the wood and into the cellar and see what was happening.

Xander and Anya sat next to each other, holding hands. Anya knew that the next time the door opened, Willow and Tara _had_ to walk through it. They had too, otherwise Xander would not survive, regardless that she was carrying his child. He would be lost to them and there would be nothing she could do to stop it.

The clock on the mantle ticked away steadily.

Buffy jumped from her spot and moved towards the door her hand reaching out for the doorknob. Xander and Anya were right behind her.

"What's going on?" Xander whispered.

"I... I thought I heard something," Buffy replied.

"You don't think they've attacked Giles do you?" Anya asked, refusing to call him by any other name. She thought it was rather silly on his part.

"Of course not," Buffy replied vehemently, as she looked quickly to Xander.

With a slight shake of his head, Buffy nodded and he went to his room. He came back moments later with a cross and bottle of holy water in one hand, he handed Buffy a stake from his other hand.

"Oh come on. You don't think they're vampires do you?" Anya asked.

They stepped back when they heard the doorknob turn, Xander pulled Anya behind him.

**Chapter Five**

"Will... Tara... Giles?" Buffy said, unaware that she too had reverted back to his old name.

"Xander... I need your help," Giles said as he stepped through the door, helping Willow.

"Oh my God, Will," Buffy cried out, tears streaming down her face.

"Xander... Tara."

Xander squeezed past them and headed downstairs.

"Is she okay?" Anya asked.

"She's fine, exhausted, but fine," Giles replied as he began to move towards the couch.

"Why hasn't she said anything?" Buffy asked.

"Give her time. Why don't you help Xander with Tara," he suggested.

"Yeah... sure," Buffy answered, reluctantly releasing her hold on Willow's hand. She went downstairs to see Tara sitting up on the table. "Where's Xander?" she asked.

"Don't... don't come any closer," Tara said.

"What's wrong? Where's Xander?" she asked again, thinking the entire situation was starting to give her the _wiggins_.

"He's fine," Tara answered, slowly getting off the table, holding on to the edge to support herself.

Buffy tried to spot Xander and couldn't.

"Tara... tell me where Xander is," she demanded.

Sighing, Tara bent down and picked up the sheet that had been used to cover her.

"What did you do to him!?!"

"Nothing. I... I tried to tell him not to touch me... not yet."

"Why?" she said, taking a step closer.

"It's just residual from the spell... ask Giles, he can tell you," Tara answered.

"Don't move from there Tara, do you understand me?"

"Yes... how's... how's Willow?"

"She's upstairs... Giles!!!" Buffy called out.

"Yes Buffy, what is it? Is there something wrong?"

"Come down here now!"

"What's going on? Why haven't you brought Tara up?" he asked as he came downstairs. "What happened to Xander?"

"Ask Tara," Buffy replied.

"Tara... what's going on?"

"There was a slight backlash and Xan took the brunt of it," she explained.

"Then why did you want me to stay back?" Buffy asked.

"I... I wasn't sure if it would happen again," she replied, her arms shaking as her strength gave way.

"Tara!" Giles cried out and caught her before she managed to collapse. "Buffy, take Xander upstairs," he said before turning to Tara. "Can you make it alright?"

"Yes... I'm just really tired," she replied.

"You've had quite an ordeal," Giles said.

"Tara?"

"Willow," she replied, her heart quickening as she heard the voice that set her soul on fire.

"Are you okay?"

"Fine... I'm on my way up," she said, looking at Giles who nodded his head.

"I'll be waiting."

"Let's get you upstairs, shall we?"

"Yes please."

Buffy watched as they climbed the steps slowly and berated herself. Going over to Xander, she placed him into a fireman's carry and took him upstairs carefully.

"Xander!" Anya cried out when Buffy reached the top of the stairs.

"He's okay," Buffy said as she put him on the couch next to the others, Anya was immediately at his side.

"Who hurt him!?!" Anya asked.

"I... I think that would be me?" Tara replied, not having had the chance to explain what had happened before Buffy came upstairs.

"Remind me to hurt you _after_ the baby's born," she told Tara.

Willow looked at Giles and asked him the question that had been on the tip of her tongue the entire time she had been waiting for the rest of them to get upstairs.

"Did it work?"

"What happened?" Giles asked, rather than answering her question.

Willow looked over towards Tara before answering.

"You all know that we left you two day ago," she began, and watched as everyone except for Xander nodded their heads. "We mad it as far as the outskirts of town before we encountered... _Them_," Willow shivered as she thought back to the group of people that had embraced cannibalism.

"And?" Giles asked, his utter disgust of this subculture, grated against his humanity.

"We... did what we had to do," Tara replied, grabbing Willow's hand in her own.

"So you killed them," Anya stated.

Willow slowly nodded her head.

"It was awful, we could hear screams, and fights breaking out. We had to wait until morning to head to what was left of the football field," she said, shivering at the memory of it.

* * *

_A stronghold of vampires and demons alike fought against the wretches of humanity that had stayed behind the entire night. Once they had stepped out of their hiding place, they walked carefully up the street, a breeze brought them the smell of blood and other bodily fluids, as well as the scattered remains of vampires that had been dusted._

* * *

"When we got to the field, we began to get things ready. We both knew that we had to time it just right, or it wouldn't work," Willow said, picking up where Tara had left off. "We got as much wood as we could find and placed it in the middle of the field."

"We needed to make sure we got everyone's attention by sunset," Tara added. While Willow continued their story, Tara looked back...

**Chapter Six**

_They worked as quickly as they could to set up the alter they needed. After they'd finished, Tara poured oil; which they had brought with them, over the wood they had collected. Once that had been accomplished, they made peace with each other and those they would be fighting against._

They each sent a silent prayer for the safety of their family and for each other.

"Will?"

"Yes Tara," she replied, turning to face her other half.

"I love you... always," she said solemnly.

"Always Tara, in this world and beyond," Willow replied, sealing the pledge with a kiss.

The sun had begun to set, and already they could hear the denizens of the town stirring, and beginning their nightly quest for food. They looked at each other, trying to convey in the limited time they had left the depth of their feelings for one another.

"It's time," Willow had finally said.

Tara nodded and took a branch that she had set aside; they had wrapped the end with a cloth they had found in their hiding place the night before. She set the cloth on fire and walked around the pyramid-like structure of wood and touched the torch against it; flames igniting, as she did this, Willow began the ritual they had painstakingly worked out.

With each successful line she recited, Willow tossed herbs into a small chalice, blue smoke signaled the next step. Tara could see her picking up the knife and waiting for her, she tossed the branch into the fire and walked over to Willow, as the fire burned brightly against the darkening sky.

As she approached Willow, she could see that the fire had done its job, they were no longer alone. Tara saw Willow reaching out for her hand, taking it, Willow closed her eyes and whispered silently before cutting across Tara's palm.

Tara hissed against the pain and watched as her blood began to well up, Willow took the knife and placed it next to the chalice and held Tara's hand over it. Rivulets of blood fell into the chalice, red smoke bellowed from it.

Dipping her finger into the chalice, Willow drew a symbol on Tara's forehead.

"You are death, one with the universe, never ending, never changing. Clear a path, close the door, bring back into your fold those who pervert the way of nature. Close the door," she had said, completing her part of the ritual.

Tara took the knife and cut Willow's hand, her blood falling into the chalice. White smoke bellowed from it. She then dipped into the chalice and drew a symbol onto Willow's forehead.

"You are life, one with the universe, never ending, never changing. Always the same. Open the door, clear a path for new life. Perfect, one with nature, open the door," she concluded. She saw Willow frowning and knew why, she had added something to the incantation and hadn't told her she was going to do it. Once the words had left her mouth, she felt a power unlike anything she had ever felt before. Their hands locked together, their blood mixing...

Tara suddenly threw her head back and let out a cry that shattered glass miles away. Tara realized that she was no longer in control of her body, yet she was aware the entire time.

"You know what you must do?" she heard herself ask Willow.

"Yes."

"Do not fail us."

"Never."

"She has chosen well."

Tara felt herself walking away from Willow and straight into the throng of creatures and humans alike. She knew that Willow was watching her... watching her cut through anything that stood in her way. With a mere glance she turned a vampire into dust.

By the time she had made it to the outskirts of the field, it was obvious that she was no longer on the defensive, blocking feeble attacks coming her way. She was now after those that had begun to run away after seeing what she was capable of doing.

"Ohcha!" she cried out. She watched as bodies within a five foot radius of her exploded, blood and body parts flying through the air, landing upon those fleeing.

"Tara!!!" she heard Willow calling out her name. She turned around and saw that Willow was about to be attacked, and without blinking an eye, she waved her hand in Willow's direction and one-by-one bodies were flung into the bonfire.

Screams filled the night air.

"Vahshodun... necra... hades... hecht," she said, throwing out her arms from her sides as a blinding light engulfed everything in its path.

No one was safe. The light reached every part of Sunnydale, no creature, no human was left untouched, the town was swept clean.

She could feel the symbol burn on her forehead and knew it was burning Willow as well.

She hoped Willow would be able to fulfill her part.

She turned towards the high school and with one final push, she closed the Hellmouth for good.

**Part 7**

"Then what happened?' Buffy asked when Willow had gotten to the closure of the Hellmouth, as she continued to eye Tara.

"I had too much power," Tara whispered.

"What do you mean?" Xander asked having finally woken up during the recounting of events.

"She channeled too much power... and she needed to be stopped... or..."

"Or what?" Giles asked, growing concerned as he listened. He knew something was bound to go wrong, and it had.

"Or I would be a bigger danger than anything you've ever faced before," Tara replied.

"Oh shit," Xander uttered.

"That's not a good thing," Anya ventured.

"So how did you fix it?" Buffy asked.

"I... I killed her," Willow said softly.

"What?" everyone asked but Buffy who had heard Willow's response.

"What are you talking about Will?"

"I... I stabbed Tara... in the heart. I killed her."

Silence permeated the room.

* * *

_Tara walked over to Willow, she could feel the power running in her veins._

"You must do this now," she told Willow.

"I... I can't," she'd replied.

"You must. Grab the knife... now!"

She knew Willow would not be able to resist the command, would be unable to deny the pull. She watched as Willow picked up the knife and stepped forward.

"If you do not do this now, you will surely die, along with your friends. Especially the one called Buffy."

* * *

Everyone looked in Buffy's direction after Willow had repeated what Tara had apparently said.

"So... I kept walking until I was a foot away," Willow continued haltingly, her bottom lip trembling.

* * *

_Tara could see Willow with the knife in her hand, but did not react. She only knew that if Willow didn't do this, she would cause her pain, and that was the last thing on earth she'd ever wanted to do._

* * *

"I felt my arm moving back... I... I couldn't stop myself."

Buffy experienced a sickening sense of deja vu while Willow explained what she had done.

* * *

_Tara fought for control and said:_

* * *

"She told me..."

* * *

_"Do it."_

* * *

"_'Do it'_ and I did," Willow said, tears streaming down her face.

* * *

_Tara could remember briefly; before everything went black, trying to reach out, to tell Willow it was okay. The only thing she did do was drop to her knees, struggling to keep her eyes open, and as they closed against her will, her last sight was of Willow..._

Then nothing.

* * *

"She fell to her knees and she stared at me... then her eyes closed and she toppled over."

"I... I think that's enough for now," Giles finally interrupted.

"No... it's okay," Willow replied.

"It most certainly is not..."

"Yes, it is. Because there's nothing left to tell. I don't remember anything else."

"Nothing... nothing at all?"

Willow shook her head. "Only waking up back here."

"I see... yes... yes. Umm... I do believe you two should get some rest. I'd... I'd like to ask you both some questions later on. If you don't mind?"

"Alright," Tara answered as she slowly got up from the couch. She turned towards Willow and held her hand out, who grabbed it and stood up. They walked to their bedroom silently, reaching the door they opened it, then stepped inside, shutting everything else out. Tara walked over to the bed, after releasing Willow's hand and sat down. Taking a deep breath, her heart broke as she saw Willow wiping at her tears. "Before you say you're sorry... you had to do it Willow. There's nothing else you could have done, nothing."

She wanted to just fall back and close her eyes and let sleep take her, but she couldn't. So, standing up, she began to disrobe, getting her nightgown and letting it slide down her body. She knew she had to give Willow time to reconcile what she had to do, otherwise they would not be able to move forward.

"Come to bed Willow," she whispered. She watched as her love mechanically went through the motions before getting in with her. "Do you think we should wait?" she asked as soon as Willow tucked herself against her.

"For what?" she finally answered, relieved that Tara had not rejected her.

"Asking Giles for the favor," she said. She felt Willow moving so that she was looking into her face.

"You... you still want to? After what I did?"

"Unless you don't want to?"

"Oh... God yes. I still want to... I just... I didn't think..."

"Willow, I love you always," she said, raising herself up so that she could kiss Willow's lips. "Always."

"I don't deserve you."

"Hey... stop that," she told her. "So... when do you think we should ask him?"

"How about the weekend? I think you're going to be tied up for the rest of the week. Besides, it'll give him the chance to digest the prospect."

"Do you think he'll do it?" Tara asked.

"Well, he does owe us that favor," Willow replied.

"It's such a big favor though Willow. He might not want to... at least, maybe not with me," she said.

"Oh, I don't know about that, you're pretty irresistible," Willow answered.

"Really?"

Willow smiled, nodding her head, before bending down and claiming Tara's mouth.

* * *

"Why don't we get lunch started, I'm sure everyone's famished," Giles suggested.

"Yeah.. I'm starved," Xander added.

"Why am I not surprised?"

"I'll be back in a minute," Buffy replied as she got up and left the cabin.

"Is she okay?"

"I'm not sure... but she'll come back soon, I'm sure of it. Alright, let's get lunch started," Giles said looking at the front door and praying for Buffy.

* * *

Buffy walked down towards the lake, gathering a few stones along the way. She stood at the edge of the lake and tossed the stones in, watching the rippling effect on the surface.

"Mom... what am I going to do?" she said aloud as the last of the stones sank beneath the water. She stayed for another few minutes before turning around and heading back to the cabin and her family.

The End.


End file.
